Get the surfboard. They fly upwind and don't take a lot of power to get going. When going out, follow a zig zag pattern to avoid breaking sections. Kind of like skiing moguls. Go way out past the breakers, then turn and go upwind. If you do this correctly, you should be upwind of where you started and will be able to make some wave rides.

Try to do low pops over the breakers or go around them on the way out. The sideshore current will be less the further you go out, so don't worry about losing some ground in the breaking section. Once you are past the breakers, use the deeper waters to crank upwind and make up the ground you lost. Also, depending how far apart the waves are and how far from the break to the shore, especially on the way in, you can take advantage of the smoother water to pull upwind a little.

The type of kite you are riding may have something to do with it as well. Some kites sit deeper in the window or are low aspect ratio kites, and are not the best in the world at helping you get back upwind. There is a catch-22 though, in that low aspect ratio kites that sit further back in the window are the ones that have much of the drift that wave riders want.

Another thing that helps in the swell outside the break zone to help your upwind is to try to keep your torso on one plane, and bend your knees as you go over each swell. On a twin tip that can sometimes help you set your edge to go upwind as fast as possible.

Body posture was the key for me to learning to ride upwind efficiently. Straighten your back, stand on your back foot and look in the direction you want to go. Pointing with one arm in the direction and looking over your shoulder can help emphasize this.

Get outside the waves and don't be afraid to go into some deeper water to tack upwind then once upwind come into the waves and do some tricks.

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